New research in the microregion of Musti (El Krib) in N Tunisia in 2019–2023 has revealed unpublished 2nd–3rd-century AD funerary monuments featuring rich iconography, including a female figure beside the altar and two pigs. These items and other published epigraphic and anepigraphic monuments from the fertile microregion stand out from other tombstones in Roman Africa. Both the type of monument and its relief decoration distinguish these objects. A rare holistic approach, combining historical, epigraphic and iconographic analyses with the results of archaeobotanical and archaeozoological research, will enhance our understanding of the history and agriculture of the Musti microregion and this part of Proconsular Africa during the early Roman Empire.

The development of runic writing (the early Germanic alphabetic script) and the practice of inscribing runes on stone are difficult to trace, particularly as rune-stone inscriptions are rarely found in original and/or datable contexts. The discovery of several inscribed sandstone fragments at the grave field at Svingerud, Norway, with associated radiocarbon dates of 50 BC–AD 275, now provide the earliest known context for a runestone. An unusual mixture of runes and other markings are revealed as the fragments are reconstructed into a single standing stone, suggesting multiple episodes of inscription and providing insight into early runic writing practices in Iron Age Scandinavia.

La Milpa, situated in northern Belize, stands out as one of the region's largest archaeological sites, having served as the capital of an ancient Maya city-state. Its significance is indicated by extensive monumental architecture, with the epicenter covering approximately 8.8 ha. The site's corpus of monuments, comprising 23 stelae and several altars, underscores its prominence in northern Belize, rivaling the corpora of sites such as Nim li Punit and Caracol. Despite its remote location, La Milpa has garnered the attention of researchers, particularly since the first modern survey of the site in 1988. Subsequent studies—in particular, that by Nikolai Grube in the 1990s—has provided detailed analyses of the site's corpus of carved monuments. Recent efforts, including epigraphic documentation in 2019, serve to enhance our understanding of La Milpa's dynastic history through traditional epigraphic and computational photographic methods. Utilizing field observations, raking light photography, and 3D photogrammetric models, we have refined previous analyses and provide new insights into the iconography and textual segments of the monuments. Here, we present the results of these recent efforts as well as our new analyses of a selection of monuments.

Classic Maya history was rife with shifting political coalitions and disputes with the key antagonists, Tikal and the Kaan regime, at the center. Understanding how power dynamics and political shifts were experienced among subordinate polities is best viewed from multiple perspectives. We employ elements of Graeber and Sahlins' (2017) stranger-king model, focusing on exogamous marriage practices in relation to two Snake Queens ruling at Waka’. They served as direct links between the Kaan regime and the subordinate Wak polity. We focus on the political and diplomatic nature of their roles in crafting Waka's place in the overarching narratives of alliance and conquest during the sixth through the early part of the eighth centuries. The pairing of archaeological and textual data surrounding Ix Ikoom in the sixth century and Lady K'abel during the seventh century permit interrogation of women's prominence with respect to Kaan regime-building strategies during these centuries.

The story of the Classic Maya “Snake” kingdom is truly a tale of two cities, with a capital that evidently switched from Dzibanche to Calakmul in the seventh century a.d. This article explores the era of transition between them in search of an elusive sequence of kings, while asking why the transfer came about and who played principal roles in it. Although grounded in finds at Calakmul, any attempt to answer complex questions of this nature must draw on a wider body of materials, both epigraphic and archaeological, from across the southern Maya Lowlands. Whatever portrait of the serpent kingdom is now possible, it is one that can only arise from close collaboration and the fusion of many scattered sources and clues.

The article presents the results of the last decade of archaeological and epigraphic research, which clarified the history of the polities of the ancient Maya sites of Holmul and Naranjo during the expansion of the Dzibanche royal dynasty in the eastern area of the Department of Peten, Guatemala, from the second half of the sixth century through the first half of the seventh century a.d. The discussion centers on the textual and material indicators of the geopolitical contacts of the royal families of Sak Chuwen of Naranjo and Chak Tok Wayaab of Holmul, including changes in polychrome pottery and hieroglyphic inscriptions, in particular, rhetoric of good governance and political loyalty. In the case of Holmul, the transformation affects the urban landscape of the site. New data clarify the relationship between Holmul and Naranjo during the initial period of their subordination to the kings of Dzibanche. The emerging picture of these secondary alliances and hierarchies within the Kaanu'l domain is essential for a better understanding of Classic Maya political systems at local and regional levels.

The Kaanuˀl dynasty ruled a hegemonic state with political influence over much of the Classic Maya Lowlands between a.d. 520 and 751. The present article introduces the subject for a special section of the journal, which refocuses attention on the archaeological zone of Dzibanche in southern Quintana Roo, Mexico, where new data are emerging about the origins of the Kaanuˀl dynasty, its urban organization, and its connections to neighboring centers. In this article, we present new data from a recent lidar survey as well as from previous work by Enrique Nalda's Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) project to reevaluate Dzibanche's characteristics vis-à-vis its rise as a kingdom with far-reaching political influence. We complement these archaeological data with epigraphic information from new monuments and reanalysis of existing ones based on 3D scanning to update the list of Dzibanche rulers. We then revisit the chronology of Dzibanche's royal burials proposing correlations with known Early Classic Kaanuˀl rulers. Overall, the contributions to this special section present new perspectives on the Kaanuˀl's rise to power and its relationship with distant vassals in the crucial period of expansion into northern Peten, leading to the defeat of Tikal and eventually to its transition to a new dynastic seat at Calakmul in the a.d. 630s.

This contribution provides a study of the fabula Atellana from an epigraphic perspective. It brings together the existing inscriptions related to this dramatic genre, explaining the challenges that one faces when trying to identify possible Atellana actors. It also examines the status of Atellana performers and playwrights, contrasting the information provided by literary sources, especially Livy, with the data obtained from inscriptions, which indicate an increasing professionalization of Atellana actors in the first century a.d. Finally, this article poses some questions concerning the development, continuity and geographical diffusion of Atellan comedy in the Imperial era in the light of the epigraphic material and also in comparison with the evidence available for other popular shows, specifically mime and pantomime, which suggests that by the second century a.d. the Atellana was no longer performed on public stages but was rather represented in private settings and studied for its linguistic and rhetorical peculiarities.

Our knowledge about Cyrenaican horses during the Greek and Roman periods is mainly derived from ancient literary sources. They tell us that horses were bred with distinctive skills in this region and report interesting stories highlighting the participation of Cyrenaican horses in athletic games. The literary data suggests Cyrene is a horse-breeding centre and this paper examines whether these assertions represent a reality, or simply a convention. This study investigates and analyses other locally related archaeological data, including epigraphy documents published by the digital corpora of IGCyr and IRCyr. Although most of the inscriptions in these corpora are published, little attention has been given to horses. The adapted approach here aims to build up a picture about horses using local evidence, with a focus on the linguistic indications of equestrian practice at Cyrenaica and the use of horse-related terms in nomenclature. Interestingly, the regional textual and archaeological data provide us with a similar picture to that presented by the literary references regarding horse breeding in Cyrenaica, charioteer training and their contribution to overseas Greek and Roman sport.

Roman remains were discovered by chance at Saf-Saf Lakhdara in the Chott Chergui (Algeria). This article attempts to demonstrate that these ruins are part of a Roman fortification in the south of Caesarian Mauretania, far from the Severan limes, the course of which has been confirmed by numerous archaeologists. A historical-comparative study has been carried out to confirm that the ruins of Saf-Saf Lakhdar are those of a castellum. The corpus of graphic and photographic records and the ‘Khnag ‘Azzir’ inscription, combined with theoretical sources on Roman defensive architecture, confirmed that the fortifications at Saf-Saf Lakhdar were part of a castellum. The ‘Khnag ‘Azzir’ inscription revealed three main facts: it is dedicated to deities to commemorate the victory over the Berber tribes of the Saharan Atlas; it mentions Caius Octavius Pudens, who was procurator during the reign of the emperor Septimius Severus; and it mentions the conflicts between Rome and the Bavarians, a tribe from the ancient Maghreb. We urgently need to protect the site and carry out excavations in the hope of finding pottery or other objects that could shed light on and support this discovery.

The rare word λάκος occurs in an oracular enquiry from Dodona. Although it is likely to mean ‘a (bundle) of rags’, some scholars believe that the consultation concerns the theft of a garment in good condition. However, the evidence for a semantic change ‘tatters’ > ‘garment’ or vice versa in ancient Greek is weak. In this paper, we assess the evidence of some nouns (Aeolic βράκος and poetic λαῖφος, λαίφη, σπϵῖρον) that allegedly combine the meanings ‘(bundle of) tatters, rags’ and ‘piece of clothing, garment’. Drawing from the evidence provided by papyri and inscriptions, we propose two alternative hypotheses for λάκος in the Dodonaean enquiry: it may refer either to a ragged garment kept as an offering in a temple or to some tattered cloth used for wrapping various valuable items.